Chase Auto repossession

[boomer4d]

I applied for a mortgage perapproval a couple of weeks ago and got hit with a Chase account I thought had been paid off in an insurance claim. I've never heard anything out of Chase, no payment demands, no post sale deficiency notification (as required by Alabama law), never heard anything out of the other drivers insurance so I assumed it had all been taken care of. (I was in a major depression after my wife passed away the previous year and just let it slide).

As I have discovered the series of events goes like this.

Several years ago (06/08/2022) I owned a vehicle financed by Chase that was involved in an accident (son was driving and was t-boned at an intersection by someone running a red light) and towed.

I filed a claim with my insurance company who kicked me to the other drivers carrier. I was able to get a claim filed successfully on 6/30/2022 with them and as I mentioned above I thought the whole thing was closed and neglected to follow up.

Apparently, Chase issued a repossession order on 07/06/2022 and had the vehicle released and towed from the towing lot to auction on 07/07/2022 and sold it before the claims adjustor could assess the damage on the car and get a check cut for the damages.

Payments were NOT behind at any time during the time we had the car, the car was fully insured and I have no idea why it was repossessed. According to the person in the Chase Auto probate department it was "because you were behind on your payments". When I asked for the date of the last payment posted to my account I was told 07/15/2022, one month after the reposseession.

When I asked how it was possible that I was making payments and the car was repossessed I was told "you were behind already".

I have the Chase statements and my bank statements that support the fact that ALL my payments were made on time, as agreed from date of inception to one month after repossession.

Trade line on all 3 reports shows as a repossion (2 months) and the goes to CO, 0/0/0 for the 30/60/90, with a charge of $13k and balance due of $9400.

I've tried to find an attorney to get advice but I either get "we only do bankruptcy" and I am NOT going down that road or they don't reply to my inquiriy.

Suggestions? Do I dispute with the CRAs, the CRAs and Chase, or just Chase? Or do I keep looking for an attorney and bite the bullet and contact someone like Lexington Law?

Thanks in advance!

[coldfusion]

This isn't an issue that would be resolved by disputes with the CRAs and one that would be debatable as to whether or not a credit repair agency like Lexington Law could do anything you couldn't either (and we don't advocate the use of such agencies on this site either BTW).

If it were me I'd probably start off by looking into filing a complaint online,  starting off with the Alabama Attorney General's office and if they can't help then file with either the FDIC or CFPB - not sure which would be the correct option so if the Attorney General's office punted I'd start with the FDIC and let them either accept the complaint, forward your complaint to the CFPB themselves, or instruct you to file with the CFPB yourself. 

Since you don't have a lawyer representing you the Attorney General's office should be able to work with you directly when investigating your complaint.   If you had a lawyer they would only deal with you through your lawyer.  

Someone else might have a better idea. 

[boomer4d]

Thanks for the feedback, very much appreciated!

[pizzadude]

You mentioned that you were just recently notified about this, was it on your credit reports since 2022 or did it just appear?

Is there a collection agency appearing or just your original Chase tradeline?

[GreatLife]

As suggested above you could try filing a complaint with state AG but this sounds rather complicated and they might not do the indepth work needed to reach a satisfactory resolution. My 1st step would be to submit a CRA dispute so Chase is forced to either remove or formally validate the debt. If validated my 2nd step would be requesting a legal referral from county BAR or my employer sponsored plan. 3rd step would be documenting requests to all involved companies for copies of their related records & documents, including your own insurance company if at time of accident they were notified of the incident. 4th step would be contacting the referred lawyers for a free consult. Big law firms probably don't want minor cases but small-ish or single atty firms are more likely to open the door.

Please keep us posted. Good Luck!

[boomer4d]

Apparently it's been on my reports. I haven't financed anything or opened any credit cards in the last 3 years so I hadn't pulled it and for whatever stupid reason didn't pull it before I applied for the mortgage pre-approval and wasn't aware it was showing as a negative tradeline. I was under the impression the vehicle had been paid off by the other drivers insurance company and failed to follow up on it (10000000% on me).

Chase has made no effort whatsoebver to contact me about the debt (including the redemption and deficiency balance notifications that are required by Alabama state law) nor have they sold it to a collection agency.

I sent a request to Chase on 06/03/2025 for all the documentation related to the account no later than 30 days from the date of that letter. That request included:

1. Copy of the original loan contract signed by the account holder(s). 

1. Complete Transaction and Payment History from account origination through the present, including payment dates, amounts, and method of payment. 

1. Monthly Billing Statements for the full duration of the account. 

1. All Notices and Communications addressed to me or my late wife, including: 

• Payment reminders or notices of default 

• Right-to-cure letters or delinquency warnings 

• Repossession notices 

• Post-repossession notices (e.g., notice of deficiency or charge-off) 

1. Repossession Documentation, including: 

• Authorization/order for repossession 

• Internal repossession log or notes 

• Hold Harmless/Release submitted to the storage or auction facility 

• Condition or valuation reports prepared at time of repossession 

1. Deficiency Balance or Settlement Records, including: 

• Any statements, demands, or collection letters issued post-repossession 

• Any record of charge-off or debt sale 

1. Credit Reporting Data, specifically: 

• All Metro 2 or equivalent furnishing files submitted to Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion from January 2021 through present 

• Internal notes explaining any status changes in the account 

1. Any internal communications or account notes that document your servicing actions, including probate processing if applicable. 

To date the only thing I have recieved is a copy of the contract and the transaction history. I was able to download all the past quarterly statements (all show the account as current with no late payments).

Dispute has been crafted and sent to Chase CMRRR, we'll see where that goes. In the meantime still trying to find an attorney if it comes to that.

I've also requested the files related to the insurance claim from the other drivers insurance company on 06/06/2025, that ask included:

• Full claim file 
• Initial intake notes 
• Adjustor logs 
• Communications records including phone calls, texts, emails or postal mail via USPS or similar to any of the following: 
  • Chase Auto 
  • Esurance 
  • me
  • my son (driver at the time of the accident) 
• Final disposition of the claim 
• Claim decision letter 

Nothing out of them either

Thanks y'all!

[FicoMike0]

Seems like there's more than a credit issue here. Was anyone charged with the accident? Anyone hurt? Was your claim ever settled? Chase stole the car and sold it?

[boomer4d]

No charges were filed against the other driver (his fault, he ran a red light, t-boned my son in the passenger front door

No injuries

Based on communications with Farmers (other drivers insurance) the claim was dropped because they didn't have access to the vehicle to assess the damage (they called me on 08/10/2022 to let me know vehicle had been repossessed and couldnt assess the damage and had already been towed to auto auction). I've asked Farmers for the full claim file (CMRRR on 6/10/2025) including adjustors notes and disposition and have gotten no response.

I never heard anything from Farmers or Chase on a settlement and nothing from Chase post repo on right to redeem or after the sale on a defieincy balance notification (which as I understand it is required by law in the state of Alabama).

Chase claims I was behind on my payments, my bank statements show all payments coming out between 7 and 10 days prior to payment due date. Chase quarterly statements show account current, all payments made on time.

Filed a complaint with the Alabama AG today, CFPB next. Still looking for an attorney that can help.